The Austin Telco Federal Credit Union has put 2.5 acres at State Highway 71 West under contract to build its first Bastrop branch.

The credit union's branch will measure about 4,000 square feet and will feature six regular drive-through lanes and two drive-through ATM lanes. Construction is expected to begin in January and should take about six months.

The Bastrop location is expected to employ eight to 10 full-time staffers and about eight to 10 part-time staffers. Bastrop currently has only has one other credit union branch, the Greater Texas Federal Credit Union.

James Poplin, president of Austin Telco, says that after receiving its community charter designation last year, the credit union has sought cities around Austin for expansion. Last year, Austin Telco reported assets of about $350 million.

"We're looking for sites all the time," Poplin says. "We certainly are looking for land to serve the five-county area."

Last January, Austin Telco received a federal community charter from the National Credit Union Administration, meaning the credit union could expand its membership. Austin Telco now has about 58,000 members. The designation gives Austin Telco the potential to add 1.2 million members.

The designation enabled Austin Telco to open its membership to anyone who lives, works, worships or attends school in the Travis, Williamson, Bastrop, Caldwell or Hays counties.

Credit union memberships traditionally have been limited to employees of certain businesses. Austin Telco was established in 1941 for local employees of telephone companies.

Austin Telco opened a branch in Cedar Park about two months ago. The Bastrop branch is Austin Telco's second branch outside its existing presence in Travis County. More regional branches are in store, Poplin says.

More and more credit unions are looking to expand to outlying cities, says Tom Hodge, vice president of sales and member services at the Texas Credit Union League.

"The outlying areas hold a lot of opportunities for credit unions. The metropolitan areas are saturated as far as the field of memberships they can serve," Hodge says.

Despite the opportunity offered by a growing town such as Bastrop, the Austin-based University Federal Credit Union -- one of the region's largest credit unions -- doesn't plan to enter the Bastrop market, President and CEO Tony Budet says.

"We have very different business plans [from Austin Telco]," Budet says.